
Grants help CKI take on new projects
Eight Circle K International projects receive Tomorrow Fund grants.
By Erin Chandler
Circle K International members are the next generation of servant leaders — and they’re already making a difference in college and university communities around the world. The Kiwanis Children’s Fund established the Tomorrow Fund to help these clubs implement more creative solutions to problems and make the greatest possible positive impact.
This July, the Children’s Fund awarded eight Tomorrow Fund grants — all to help launch brand-new projects with five CKI clubs and three districts.
Happy Halloween Project
Circle K International of Baldwin Wallace University, Ohio, U.S.
Halloween is a Kiwanis family holiday for Baldwin Wallace University CKI. The club teams up with the Kiwanis Club of Middleburg Heights, the Berea-Midpark High School Key Club and the Berea-Midpark Middle School Builders Club to fill over 900 bags with candy and healthy treats. The Kiwanis club distributes 800 of the bags to local food pantries, while the CKI club takes 100 bags to the elderly residents of Generation Living Center. A Tomorrow Fund grant will help purchase the healthy Halloween treats for the bags and refreshments for volunteers.
Six-Cycle K Program: Read. Lead. Succeed.
Circle K International of Maryhill College, Quezon Province, Philippines
A Tomorrow Fund grant will help Maryhill College CKI establish and equip a reading hub — an accessible learning space where children can practice reading, borrow books and engage in literacy-enriching classes and activities. The hub is part of the club’s larger literacy initiative, which aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for education and literacy.
Care Without Conditions
Circle K International of Northern Arizona University, Arizona, U.S.
Members of Northern Arizona University CKI aim to help the unhoused population in their community — including fellow students — by assembling and distributing care packages containing hygiene products, nonperishable snacks, socks, bottled water and more. Each package also will include a handmade card and a guide to local resources like shelters, food banks and healthcare services. Club members hope the care packages will bridge the gap between people experiencing homelessness and the larger university community.
Birthday in a Box
Circle K International of Stockton University, New Jersey, U.S.
Stockton University CKI wants to give everyone in the community a chance to celebrate their birthday. A Tomorrow Fund grant will help club members assemble at least 50 birthday kits containing cake mix, frosting, a disposable cake pan, balloons, ribbons, stickers and a handmade birthday card, all of which they will deliver to local food pantries. The project will ensure that those facing food insecurity do not have to choose between purchasing meals for the week and making a loved one’s birthday special.
Mama & Me Literacy Lounge
Circle K International of the University of Technology, Jamaica
University of Technology CKI is establishing a reading nook for mothers and babies at Mary’s Child, a home for teenage moms in crisis. This “literacy lounge” will give approximately 25 teens and 25 children each year access to parenting and special needs resources, as well as books that will boost early childhood literacy and maternal mental health. The club also will support regular reading sessions and workshops to foster bonds between mothers and children.
Governor’s Project
Circle K International Caribbean District
A Tomorrow Fund grant will help the Caribbean District of CKI set up a community library and computer resource center inside a school or community center in an underserved area of Jamaica. The district hopes that access to books and computers will promote and support lifelong learning for everyone from young children gaining basic literacy skills to adults seeking employment. If successful, the project will expand to more locations across the Caribbean.
What’s In My Meal?
Circle K International Florida District
During the Florida District’s 2025 Leadership Training Conference, CKI and Kiwanis club members will come together to assemble 120 “healthy food kits.” A Tomorrow Fund grant will help fill the kits with toy foods, games, aprons, printed placemats and information sheets to help kids and families learn how to create balanced, healthy meals — even on a tight budget. Clubs will take the kits back to their communities to be distributed through schools to kids in low-income households.
One Family
Circle K International New England District
Members of the CKI New England District connect with their communities by visiting the residents of local senior centers. At this year’s district convention, they will join Kiwanis club members in making care packages with items like tissues, lip balm and hand lotion — along with hand-written notes that they will take to seniors in their hometowns. A Tomorrow Fund grant will double the number of care packages that convention-goers can make from 1,200 to 2,400.
How to get involved
Does your Circle K International group have a project idea that could benefit from a Tomorrow Fund grant? Learn more about the grant and how to apply. If your Kiwanis club does not yet sponsor a CKI club, learn about the advantages of chartering one.